Patriarchy, male dominance, the role and empowerment of women in Nigeria

Abidemi R. Asiyanbola, Olabisi Onabanjo University

In the paper, the nature of male dominance and roles in Nigerian family is empirically analyzed and discussed. The data used in the study were obtained through a cross-sectional survey of 233 households in Ibadan between November 1999 and April 2000. ANOVA, paired samples‘t’ test and correlation statistical techniques were used to analyze the data. The result of the study shows that there is no significant intra-urban variation in male dominance within domestic units, but significant intra-urban variation at p<.05 is found in male activities/roles within domestic units. A significant difference at p<.01 is found between male and female activities/roles within domestic units with the female doing much of the domestic activities. No significant relationship is found between male activities/roles and their socio-economic characteristics. The result suggest that men are majorly affected by cultural orientation, and women empowerment could be enhanced through a re-orientation of men via gender education.